Written Answers

Thursday 17 August 2000

Scottish Executive

Air Accident

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to publish the Crown Counsel’s report to the Lord Advocate on the review of the Fatal Accident Inquiry into the 1994 Chinook helicopter crash on the Mull of Kintyre and what the reasons are for its position in relation to the publication or otherwise of this report.

Colin Boyd QC: The advice given by Crown Counsel to the Law Officers is done so on a confidential basis. Consequently, there are no plans to publish the advice which Crown Counsel submitted to the Law Officers in connection with the Chinook helicopter crash.

Cancer

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what applications were made to the New Opportunities Fund under the initiative "Living with Cancer", which applications were (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful and what the reasons were for decisions under both categories.

Susan Deacon: I refer to the answer given to question S1W-8899.

Dental Health

Nora Radcliffe (Gordon) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to improve the dental health of children, in particular those living in deprived areas.

Susan Deacon: The Scottish Executive is currently considering a range of further measures which might be taken to improve oral and dental health among children, particularly those living in deprived areas. Further announcements will be made in due course.

  At present throughout Scotland, health boards and Primary Care Trusts are working together to co-ordinate local services with the aim of improving the oral health of children. Many boards and Trusts have comprehensive prevention programmes which link dental staff, health visitors, nursery and playgroup dental health education programmes and this remains a priority for those working towards the aim of improving children’s dental health.

  In addition, the early years enhanced capitation scheme provides enhanced monthly registration payments for General Dental Practitioners to undertake increased preventive activity for 0-2 year olds, with a sliding scale to recognise the greater challenge faced by dentists in more deprived areas, and for 3-5 year olds with the highest levels of dental decay.

Diabetes

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it is taking to reduce extra costs in the treatment of diabetes resulting from the onset of complications.

Susan Deacon: I refer Mary Scanlon to the answer I gave to question S1W-8874.

Eating Disorders

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive which health boards submitted bids to the Mental Health Development Fund for funding for the years 1998-99, 1999-2000 and 2000-01 for the treatment of anorexia nervosa and bulimia.

Iain Gray: There have been no specific bids submitted to the Mental Health Development Fund for services for the treatment of anorexia nervosa or bulimia.

Elderly People

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-4278 by Iain Gray on 23 February 2000, whether the target dates for implementation of the four recommendations in the Scottish Health Advisory Service report referred to have been met, and what the current status is of the Health Improvement Plan for Highland, specifically with reference to the improvement of services for older people.

Iain Gray: Responsibility for implementing the recommendations of the SHAS report lies with Highland Health Board and Highland Primary Care NHS Trust. I understand that these bodies are implementing the recommendations in line with the proposed target dates.

  The health board and its partners have prepared a Health Improvement Programme covering the period 2000-05. The Programme sets out the principles which the board and its partners will follow in providing services for older people. I understand that these have been developed in the light of the SHAS recommendations and of best practice generally.

Health

Nora Radcliffe (Gordon) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail any plans to employ salaried NHSiS doctors in deprived areas, indicate when such proposals will go to consultation and outline what the provisional timetable is for the stages in any such process.

Susan Deacon: The current review of Primary Care Act pilots should be completed by late autumn. If it demonstrates they are successful, the Executive will consider commencing relevant sections of the 1997 Primary Care Act. This would allow Primary Care NHS Trusts to employ GPs to address local needs. Consultation will be built into this timescale.

Health

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what consultation will take place with the medical profession, and with whom, prior to any introduction of salaried GPs.

Susan Deacon: I refer to the answer given to question S1W-8909.

Kingston Bridge

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what impact the current repairs to the Kingston Bridge are having on the West of Scotland economy.

Sarah Boyack: The current strengthening works have been designed so that they could be undertaken with minimal disruption to traffic on this extremely busy and important route. No adverse effects have been reported by commerce and industry in Glasgow and the surrounding area.

Kingston Bridge

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has assessed the possible economic and social impact on the West of Scotland should the Kingston Bridge be closed to traffic.

Sarah Boyack: No. The current strengthening works will rectify the serious structural problems which have affected the bridge and will, with normal maintenance, ensure the integrity of this important traffic link.

Kingston Bridge

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much compensation it was paid by the original designers of the Kingston Bridge, at current prices, following discovery of any design faults.

Sarah Boyack: The Secretary of State inherited two court actions against the consulting engineers who designed the bridge when he took over responsibility for this structure when the M8 through Glasgow was adopted as a trunk road on 1 April 1996. The actions were settled out of court in 1997 without any admission of liability on the part of the defendants. Each party bore its own expenses. Beyond that the terms of the settlement are confidential to the parties.

Ministerial Correspondence

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when I will receive a reply to my letter of 22 March 2000 to the Deputy Minister for Health and Community Care regarding my proposed Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care Bill.

Iain Gray: I issued a reply to your letters of 22 March and 28 March on 28 April. I have arranged for a copy of my letter to be sent to you.

Planning

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-3638 by Sarah Boyack on 24 January 2000, whether it will list, for every year since the enactment of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997, the total number of (a) completion notices served by local authorities, (b) completion notices confirmed by the Secretary of State and Scottish Ministers, (c) completion notices which have been the subject of appeals to the Secretary of State and Scottish Ministers, (d) appeals upheld and (e) completion notices served directly by the Secretary of State and Scottish Ministers.

Sarah Boyack: The information regarding (a) is not held centrally. The other information requested is as follows:

  


Category 
  

From May 1997 
  

1998 
  

1999 
  

To July 2000 
  



(b) 
  

2 
  

2 
  

Nil 
  

2 
  



(c) 
  

1 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



(d) 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



(e) 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

NIl

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the ratio is of prisoners to uniformed staff in the Scottish Prison Service, broken down by establishment.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows.

  Ratio of Prisoners to Uniformed Staff in the SPS at 1 April 2000

  


Establishment 
  

Ratio 
  



Aberdeen 
  

1.1 : 1 
  



Barlinnie 
  

2.0 : 1 
  



Castle Huntly 
  

1.8 : 1 
  



Cornton Vale 
  

0.9 : 1 
  



Dumfries 
  

0.8 : 1 
  



Edinburgh 
  

1.7 : 1 
  



Glenochil 
  

1.4 : 1 
  



Greenock 
  

1.3 : 1 
  



Inverness 
  

1.3 : 1 
  



Low Moss 
  

2.2 : 1 
  



Noranside 
  

1.9 : 1 
  



Perth 
  

1.5 : 1 
  



Peterhead 
  

1.4 : 1 
  



Polmont 
  

1.7 : 1 
  



Shotts 
  

1.5 : 1

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the most recent figures are for sickness absence of uniformed staff in each of Scotland’s prisons, what that figure is expressed as an average per prison officer and what the equivalent figures were for 1999 and 1995.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond.

  His response is as follows:

  The information is not available.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the most recent available figures are for the total amount of time off in lieu outstanding in the Scottish Prison Service, what that figure is expressed as an average per prison officer and what the equivalent figures were for 1999 and 1995.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond.

  His response is as follows:

  At 1 April 2000 the total net time off in lieu outstanding within the SPS was 50,171 hours. This equates to an average of 14 hours per member of staff involved.

  The equivalent figures for 1995 and 1999 are:

  

 

Total 
  

Average 
  



1995 
  

76,382 hours 
  

22 hours 
  



1999 
  

71,435 hours 
  

19 hours

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what current proposals the Scottish Prison Service has for sickness absence management and what consultation there has been with the trade union side on any such proposals.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  The Scottish Prison Service is currently developing a new absence management procedure to cover all SPS employees. This was developed in partnership working with the trade unions.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many hours have been spent in external training for prison officers between January and June 2000, what that figure is expressed as an average per prison officer and what the equivalent figures were for 1999 and 1995.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  The available information is set out below:

  


Establishment 
  

Jan–June 2000 
  

Average Hours 


Jan–June 1999 
  

Average 
  

Jan–June 1995 
  

Average 
  



Aberdeen 
  

1112 
  

6.5 
  

318 
  

1.9 
  

Figures not available 
  



Barlinnie 
  

455 
  

1.05 
  

2131 
  

4.8 
  

Figures not available 
  



Castle Huntly 
  

558 
  

7 
  

843 
  

10.8 
  

Figures not available 
  



Cornton Vale 
  

302 
  

1.23 
  

48 
  

- 
  

Figures not available 
  



Dumfries 
  

372 
  

3.4 
  

537 
  

4.8 
  

Figures not available 
  



Edinburgh 
  

784 
  

1.95 
  

1320 
  

3.3 
  

Figures not available 
  



Glenochil 
  

Figures not available 
  

Figures not available 
  

Figures not available 
  



Greenock 
  

Figures not available 
  

Figures not available 
  

Figures not available 
  



Inverness 
  

125 
  

1.52 
  

120 
  

1.46 
  

16 
  

0.2 
  



Low Moss 
  

140 
  

0.82 
  

158 
  

0.92 
  

Figures not available 
  



Noranside 
  

50 
  

0.9 
  

100 
  

1.85 
  

Figures not available 
  



Perth 
  

546 
  

1.4 
  

329 
  

1.03 
  

Figures not available 
  



Peterhead 
  

4638 
  

21.8 
  

5516 
  

25.9 
  

Figures not available 
  



Polmont 
  

1835 
  

8.9 
  

Figures not available 
  

Figures not available 
  



Shotts 
  

581 
  

2.1 
  

877 
  

3.2 
  

Figures not available 
  



  "External Training" is defined as external to SPS and the SPS College.

Procurator Fiscals Office

Phil Gallie (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what involvement the Lord Advocate had in assessing the prosecution case brought against Thomas McAnae, Raymond Dean, John McGregor and Dennis McGinnis in their 1998 Edinburgh High Court case.

Colin Boyd QC: This case was considered by Crown Counsel in the usual way when the circumstances were reported to Crown Office by the Procurator Fiscal for consideration of proceedings in the High Court. It is not the practice of this office to disclose which of Crown Counsel considered the evidence. All indictments are at instance of the Lord Advocate.

Scottish Executive Buildings

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail offices which it currently owns or leases.

Mr Jack McConnell: Details of the 19 leased offices in which the Scottish Executive has staff are set out in my reply to Mr Adam’s question of 16 June 2000 (S1W-7546). The   Scottish Executive has staff in the 24 Crown-owned offices set out below:

  


Greyfriars House 
  

Aberdeen 
  



Balivanich 
  

Isle of Benbecula 
  



161 Brooms Rd 
  

Dumfries 
  



132 Seagate 
  

Dundee 
  



Bankhead Ave 
  

Edinburgh 
  



Governors House 
  

Edinburgh 
  



James Craig Walk 
  

Edinburgh 
  



St Andrews House 
  

Edinburgh 
  



Saughton House 
  

Edinburgh 
  



Victoria Quay 
  

Edinburgh 
  



16 Waterloo Pl 
  

Edinburgh 
  



Thainstone Court 
  

Inverurie 
  



83 East High Street 
  

Forfar 
  



Tweedbank 
  

Galashiels 
  



Cadzow Court 
  

Hamilton 
  



Longman House 
  

Inverness 
  



Tankerness Lane 
  

Kirkwall 
  



Cameron House 
  

Oban 
  



Jeanfield House 
  

Perth 
  



Scorrybreck 
  

Portree 
  



2 St Ninians Rd 
  

Stirling 
  



10 Keith St 
  

Stornoway 
  



Station St 
  

Stranraer 
  



Strathbeg House 
  

Thurso.

Scottish Qualifications Authority

Mr Alex Salmond (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what remedial strategies are available to schools or individuals who believe that standard procedures in Scottish Qualification Authority examination appeals were not followed.

Mr Sam Galbraith: Exams and appeals are within the remit of the Scottish Qualifications Authority. Complaints from schools or individuals who believe that the standard appeals procedure has not been followed should be directed to the Chief Executive of the Scottish Qualifications Authority.

Scottish Textile Forum

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the names are of the members of the Scottish Textile Forum (STF), what the dates were of any meetings already held or will be of any meetings planned and whether the minutes of STF meetings will be made public.

Nicol Stephen: The members of the Scottish Textile Forum, which met for the first time on 12 June 2000 are:

  


Henry McLeish 
  

Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning 
  



Tracey White 
  

STUC 
  



Gerry Skelton 
  

Transport and & General Workers Union 
  



John Steel 
  

KFAT 
  



Emma Harcus 
  

Scottish Trade International 
  



Jim McFarlane 
  

Scottish Enterprise Borders 
  



Helen Bottle 
  

Scottish Enterprise Borders 
  



Julia Scott-Barrett 
  

Scottish Textile Network 
  



Tony Taylor 
  

Scottish Textile Manufacturers Association 
  



James Sugden 
  

Scottish Textile Manufacturers Association 
  



Graeme Millar 
  

Scottish Consumer Council 
  



Patrick Browne 
  

Scottish Retail Consortium 
  



Robert Mather 
  

Heriot-Watt University 
  



John Wilson 
  

British Apparel Textile Council 
  



Ray Symons 
  

Department of Trade and Industry 
  



Blair McNaughton 
  

Scottish Textile Manufacturers Association 
  



Peter Brooks 
  

Scottish Textile Manufacturers Association 
  



Prof. George Stylios 
  

Heriot Watt University 
  



Colin Clarke 
  

CAPITB 
  



Michael Bentley 
  

Textiles NTO 
  



Hugh McNab 
  

Highlands & Islands Enterprise 
  



John Mason 
  

Scottish Executive 
  



Andy Bishop 
  

Scottish Executive 
  



Claire Smith 
  

Scottish Executive 
  



  The next meeting is planned for 12 September and the Forum plans to meet quarterly thereafter. The views of the forum members will be sought at the next meeting on whether to publish minutes of these meetings.